Foreign passports in Russia have begun to be blocked through military registration and enlistment offices – what is the reason?

Issuing passports in Russia has become more difficult for those liable for military service due to restrictions at military registration and enlistment offices and delays in processing documents

This was reported by The Moscow Times, citing Russian human rights organizations and reports from citizens.

One such case was published by the human rights organization “School of the Conscript.” 25-year-old Russian Konstantin applied for a passport through the “Gosuslugi” portal, but was refused two weeks later.

The message stated that the document would not be issued due to a temporary restriction on leaving Russia imposed by the military registration and enlistment office. According to the man, the last time he was at the military registration and enlistment office was when he was in the tenth grade and he had not received any messages from it since then.

Readers of the publication “We Can Explain” also reported similar problems. One Moscow resident said that he was denied a document due to his military service status and was advised to reapply in six months. According to him, two of his acquaintances received similar denials.

Other Russians report not outright refusals, but rather delays in the procedure. In particular, one of the applicants submitted documents back in June, but later the status of the application was changed to “suspended,” which forced the procedure to start over.

Mikhail Liberov, a lawyer for the “School of Conscripts,” noted that the mere presence of a travel restriction due to failure to appear for a summons is not always a reason to refuse to issue a passport. According to him, if there is no decision on a person’s conscription for military service, such a refusal should be appealed.

Previously, “Pryamiy” reported on the problems of Russians with obtaining foreign passports. At that time, residents of Moscow and other regions complained about the lack of free places to sign up for documents. The head of the Center for Countering Disinformation, Andriy Kovalenko, suggested that the situation may be related to the Kremlin’s preparations for a new wave of mobilization.

In addition, Ukrainian intelligence previously reported on a possible new wave of mobilization in Russia. According to its estimates, the Russian leadership is working on the possibility of conscripting about 300,000 people in 2026 and the same number in 2027.